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Librarians are also available to assist you by phone, email, or in person whenever the Library is open. Summer Hours: Mon-Thurs: 8 AM - 6:30 PM

Access Science

AccessScience 2.0 includes searchable content from McGraw-Hill's Encyclopedia of Science & Technology, 10th Edition. This online science platform provides over 8,500 online articles, more than 110,000 definitions of scientific and technical terms, biographies of more than 2,000 well-known scientists, illustrations and graphics and the latest news in science and technology.

One of the featured articles in AccessScience this month is Accelerating universe, by Robert P. Kirshner, Professor, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Massachusetts. It explains how astronomers used evidence from exploding stars to show that the expansion of the universe is not slowing down, as would be expected from the pull of gravity on matter in the universe, but is instead speeding up. Learn about the history of this understanding, and how type 1a supernovae are used as "standard candles" to track expansion.

AccessScience is available on our Articles and Databases webpage http://www.swccd.edu/~library/articles.htm. For information on how you can access library resources from off campus locations visit our remote access webpage http://www.swccd.edu/~library/Lvl2/index.asp?L2=26

New ARTstor Collection

The ARTstor digital image library includes art, architecture, archaeology, and other visual culture from around the globe.

Now available in ARTstor are 60 images of American and European prints and paintings highlighting the diverse permanent collection of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College . Of note are several Italian Renaissance paintings donated to the museum in 1937 by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.

To view this collection: go to the ARTstor Digital Library, browse by collection, and click "Cornell Fine Arts Museum (Rollins College)."

For information on how you can register for an ARTstor account visit our ARTstor information website at http://www.swccd.edu/~library/Docs/artstor0507.pdf

This Month in CQ Global Researcher

Child Soldiers
By John Felton
July 2008

Are more aggressive efforts needed to protect children?

"Since the mid-1990s, the world has watched in horror as hundreds of thousands of children and young teenagers have participated in nearly 50 wars, mostly in Africa and Asia. Children as young as 5 or 6 have served in combat, and thousands of abducted young girls were forced into sexual slavery. Some terrorist groups even strap explosive-rigged vests onto children and send them off as suicide bombers. Others have been recruited, sometimes forcibly, into the official armed forces or paramilitary units of several dozen countries.

U.N. treaties prohibit the use of child soldiers, and the Security Council "names and shames" persistent violators. But only four former guerrilla commanders have been convicted by international tribunals, and some human-rights advocates urge more aggressive prosecution of perpetrators."

To read this article and others visit our Articles and Databases webpage and click on CQ Global Researcher. Select the Remote Access link for information on how to access this resource from off campus locations.

The Online SWC Library - Always Open!

Stop by the Online Library any time to find books and articles or to receive assistance from librarians.

You'll discover a variety of resources for your research, from handouts and tutorials to guides for searching the Internet. You may even use our chat service to ask a librarian for help, 24/7.

At the Online Library, read about remote access -- all the information you need to access full-text articles and thousands of e-books from the comfort of your home.

The SWC Online Library is always open!

July e-book of the Month

Britannica Encyclopedia of World Religions is the July eBook of the Month. The encyclopedia is available with unlimited access during the month of July.

Religion is dominating today's headlines like no other time in modern history. Whether the issue is sectarian violence, stem cell research, or political elections, religion plays a critical role. But what is the story behind the headlines? The Britannica Encyclopedia of World Religions gets to the heart of the matter by providing a deeper understanding of the religions that shape our world.

Prepared by the editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster, with the assistance of hundreds of scholars and experts, this authoritative, comprehensive, and up-to-date book answers your questions as well as exposes you to the concepts, movements, people, and events associated with living and ancient religions, including Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism.

If you have already established a NetLibrary account through Southwestern College Library, visit http://www.netlibrary.com/ and log in to read "What now" or any of our other 19,000 e-book titles.

If you do not have a NetLibrary account, you can create your own account from any computer on the Southwestern College campuses. Visit our NetLibrary e-book page http://www.swccd.edu/~library/Lvl3/index.asp?L3=9 for more information.

If it's on the Web, does that make it true?

Google can be a great searching buddy - it helps us to find all kinds of information on the Web. But one thing Google can't do is evaluate whether or not the information it finds is accurate, biased, useful, or reliable.

Before you use any kind of information - whether from the Internet or from a print source - you should think critically about it. Here are some questions to ask:

Authority
Who is the author?
Is the author a qualified expert in the field?
What is her/his occupation, position, education, experience?
What are her/his credentials?
Who endorsed or published the information?

Objectivity
What is the purpose of publication? Does the material inform? Explain? Persuade?
Are assumptions, personal bias and opinions clearly stated?
Is information presented in a clear and reasonable fashion?
Are conclusions supported by facts?
Is the site supported by advertising or run by a business?
Is the author affiliated with particular organizations, institutions, or associations?

Accuracy
What were the author's sources?
Was the work peer reviewed and/or edited?
Is the work free of grammatical and typographical errors?
Do facts and conclusions check out with other reputable sources?

Currency
When was the work written and published?
Are the author's sources up-to-date?
Has the information been updated or revised?
Is there provision for corrective feedback to the author?

Scope
Is it clear what topics are covered?
Are they covered in sufficient depth?
What is their relevance to your research?

For more information, read the library's guide to Evaluating Internet Information.